8 weeks to get a Thinkpad 450s! Looking for other options.

I ordered a Thinkpad T450s on May 12. When the order was placed they said to expect delivery in 3 weeks. I've been checking my order status daily and it's been showing a shipping date of June 2 this whole time. Today, 2 DAYS before the expected shipping date, I see that they have now extended the shipping date to June 30 with a July 8 delivery date!

I was okay with the 3 week wait, but I'm not prepared to wait another 5 weeks on top of that, especially considering the last minute notification of the change. I have no confidence that the July 8 date will hold up, or that I won't find out until the end of June that it will be another month's delay.

Any suggestions of an equivalent laptop to the T450s from another manufacturer, something that I won't have to wait a month or two to get?

 

Believe it or not, people used to wait six months or longer for a specific configuration back in the day. This is a byproduct of the just in time manufacturing process, though it does lower the price of the ThinkPad you just ordered significantly. Unfortunately, if you order when there's a hiccup, you can wait or get something else. You can of course order from an online retailer, but that'll like cost more.

I'm not sure there's an equivalent to the T450s, especially if you're a stick aficionado. I'd probably say the E7450 might be worth a look. The stick and keyboard aren't as good, though it does have a better three year NBD warranty. Dell just had a 45% off coupon for the outlet, which should get to you much faster, but as I heard it, most of the good ones are gone and the E7450 is quite expensive new.